


The Curious Case of the Cinnamon Rolls

by Ayearandaday



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: A hint of Hux/Rose, Alpha Ben Solo, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Office, Baker Rey, Cinnamon Roll obsession, Does this count as cozy mystery?, F/M, Grumpy Cat Ben, Leia is sharp, Mitaka does analysis, No Smut, Office gossips, Pastries from Irresistible fix Ben's attitude, Perfect mates, Poe flirts with everyone, Poe is a dumbass, Sorry Not Sorry, The Author Has Sugar Addiction, The Author Regrets Nothing, Yes it's T-rated ABO, Yes it's a thing, background finn/poe - Freeform, ben has issues, i wonder why, in case you didn't know, no one dies, nosy colleagues, of cinnamon rolls consumption, other people's pov, very cozy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-17
Updated: 2020-07-17
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:54:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25328116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ayearandaday/pseuds/Ayearandaday
Summary: The whole office is perplexed - not only perpetually grumpy Alpha Ben Solo developed a mysterious addiction to cinnamon rolls from Irresistible, he also undergoes a magical change of character upon their consumption. What dark secret is behind the innocent pastry? The game is afoot!
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 32
Kudos: 278
Collections: Ijustfellintothissendhelp





	The Curious Case of the Cinnamon Rolls

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to my first attempt at ABO! It's not exactly the typical interpretation, but you know what, the whole story is told through the eyes of different characters and you don't really expect me to go from fluffy stories to voyeuristic porn, do you? So yeah, if you're still here, enjoy the fluff😅
> 
> Many thanks to my amazing beta fulcrum_of_pemberley!

“Whose birthday have I forgotten?” Bazine wondered idly, watching Poe unload a big bakery order from an orange and white box.

“No one's.”

“Huh?” Snap sniffed the air like a bloodhound. Despite being a Beta, his nose was cunningly sharp, especially where food was concerned. “What's the occasion?”

“Don't care,” Kaydel mumbled, eagerly biting into a muffin. “'m hungry.”

Poe smirked at her. “Someone got lucky and missed breakfast?” he teased.

The blonde rolled her eyes. “I wish. My neighbors partied all night. I overslept.”

“You poor thing.”

“So why all this?” Bazine gesticulated with the chocolate scone she had claimed, the delicious smell making her forget her dietary restrictions.

“No reason,” Poe smiled nonchalantly. “A new bakery opened near my place.” 

“A nice one?”

“Yep. The staff is so cute, I…”

His colleagues instantly burst out laughing.

“Poe, you just _have to_ flirt with everyone, you're such a stereotypical Omega.”

“Am not!”

“Are, too.”

”-- and _I_ tell you your data is bullshit!” they hear Ben “Grumpy Cat” Solo yell from the hall.

“It's not and you know it!” Armitage “Mr. Sourpuss” Hux snipped back.

Everyone groaned. On his own, Ben was just a stereotypical aggressive Alpha, but mixed with others he was a ticking bomb ready to go off at any moment. A lengthy list of destroyed company property could attest to that.

“Where do you think you're going, Solo?” Hux demanded irritably at his retreating form.

“Lunch!” Ben slammed the door right in his colleague’s face, furiously stomping around the kitchen in a cloud of angry pheromones and making others desperately scramble out of his way. Absently, he grabbed a cinnamon roll, shoved it into his mouth, then paused. 

“Smells nice.”

The whole kitchen sat with bated breaths while Ben made himself a cup of coffee and left the room significantly calmer. The second he closed the door they sighed in relief.

“Did you see that?” Snap asked incredulously.

Bazine nodded, slightly shell-shocked. “Solo _hates_ sweet goods.”

“Must have really wanted out of that conversation,” Kaydel resolved, and they left it at that.

Or so they thought.

A couple of days later, Poe brought in a new batch of delicious-smelling pastries in the familiar orange and white packaging, to everyone’s delight.

“Mmm, muffins,” Bebe purred, eagerly diving into the box.

“I like rolls better,” Jannah decided, taking a bite of her own fragrant pastry.

Dopheld inspected the box curiously, picking himself out a cookie. “What's up with the baked goods, Poe?”

The man shrugged. “Nothing. Just like this new place.”

“Irresistible?” Jannah read the logo. “That good?”

“Cute staff don't hurt either,” Kaydel teased, winking at her Mate.

Poe pouted. “Hey!”

“What?”

“Just because this one guy is really sweet…”

“No need to explain,” Jannah laughed heartily, “we all know how it goes.” They all knew Poe’s flirty ways and abundance of charm firsthand.

They all jumped as their exasperated head of HR stumbled in. Bebe, who had witnessed the Amazonian blonde visit the kitchen with a cup twice already, frowned. “Hey, Phas. Coffee again?”

“More like shelter,” Gwen sighed exhaustedly. “Snoke and Solo are back to the Empire project. I thought I would get out of there before they start throwing things.”

Her colleagues collectively winced. Phasma, a true Alpha, was the only one fearless enough to take an office right next to Solo’s which meant she had to listen to his angry outbursts more often than anyone else.

“Great idea,” Dopheld nodded sagely. “I’ll make a new pot just for you.”

As the volume of the discussion kept rising, more and more people trickled into the kitchen in search of quiet. Finally, an office door slammed shut, giving way to Solo’s heavy footsteps.

“Where the fuck is all the coffee?” he growled as everyone hurried to get out of his way.

Poe gently wedged himself between the angry Alpha and the kitchen counter before he broke anything important. 

“Allow me.”

In theory, Omega scent was supposed to calm furious Alphas down; in practice, Poe was the one with no sense of self-preservation and a fondness for that particular mug.

As the coffee filled the cup, Ben distractedly bit into a cinnamon roll.

“Thanks,” he mumbled gruffly, no longer resembling a firebreathing dragon.

The second he closed the door behind himself, the kitchen burst to life.

“Did you see _that_?” Bebe asked incredulously.

Jannah nodded with wide eyes.

“Solo apologizing? Yeah, _wild_.”

“No, not that, the roll!”

“He actually calmed down,” Gwen pointed out pensively as Poe shrugged.

“Must be something in the air.”

But it wasn’t, apparently. 

There was very little the office collectively hated more than general meetings. Their boss Leia sincerely believed it boosted morale to know what your colleagues were up to; the reality consistently proved otherwise.

“...is to what we amount the growth in the second quarter…” Snoke, the most senior and the least liked employee droned on and on.

The attendees stifled yawns.

“I'm sleepy,” Bebe sighed pitifully.

Kaydel hummed. “Ben looks pissed.”

“He hates socializing,” Bazine quietly pointed out. “And meetings. And people. And Snoke.”

Kay snorted. “ _Everyone_ hates Snoke.”

“He has a deadline,” Dopheld whispered from the other side of the table.

“Tough luck.”

Snoke was famous for his ability to drone for hours.

After Poe attempted to sleep with open eyes, Gwen passed the box with baked goods around the table to prevent further incidents. When it finally came to Ben, instead of passing it forward, he picked up a roll under the astonished gazes of his coworkers. He didn’t even notice it until the whole room went terribly quiet. 

“...Benjamin, are you quite all right?” Snoke filled the silence, looking as shocked as everyone else.

Ben frowned mid-bite. “Yes, why?”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.”

As Snoke resumed his speech, Leia leaned toward Phasma.

“Please tell me Luke didn’t come to leave us his new baking experiments,” she whispered urgently.

“He didn’t, Poe bought them.”

The older woman eyed them suspiciously. “They are not, you know, _enhanced_?”

Gwen frowned in concern. “As far as we can tell, no.”

“Something is up,” declared Poe.

And it was.

Hux’s ginger eyebrows shot up. 

“Irresistible again?”

“HR’s permission,” Poe grinned.

“It’s nice to have something for tea, isn’t it?” Gwen asked him innocently.

Hux chuckled.

“Yeah, Solo catnip. Ben-nip?” he mused, picking up a cookie.

Poe blinked. “You noticed?”

The ginger rolled his eyes. “ _Everyone_ did.” 

“And? Are we going to do something about it?”

“Like what?” Gwen questioned pointedly.

Poe shot her a mischievous grin.

“Hey, Solo, want a muffin?”

“You know I _hate_ this oversweet garbage,” Ben grumbled, cringing at the box’s contents. 

“And everything good in this world,” Jannah murmured under her breath, picking a blueberry scone.

Suddenly Ben’s eyes zeroed in on a cinnamon roll. “Huh, that’s nice,” he mused, taking the pastry to accompany his coffee.

His colleagues exchanged incredulous glances.

“OK, we _are_ doing something about it,” Gwen announced.

“Like what?” Hux frowned.

Jannah smirked. “Isn’t it obvious? Scientific experiment.”

They did just that.

“ _This_ is a cinnamon roll from a random bakery,” the dark-skinned woman announced to her enraptured colleagues. “While _this_ is the one from Irresistible.”

“Looks the same,” Bebe decided.

“Tastes the same,” Snap announced, sampling two at once.

“Smells the same,” Hux concluded.

Bazine took a sniff and frowned in concentration.

“I don’t know. This one is…” Everyone waited anxiously for her verdict. Not only was Bazine an Omega, she had incredible smell perception and experience in the cosmetic industry, hence being able to discern the most delicate fragrances. “Nah, wishful thinking.”

Her colleagues sighed disappointedly.

“Should be enough to fool him, right?” Dopheld asked.

Poe winked.

“Hey, Ben, want a roll?” he offered the other pastry.

“How many times do I have to tell you I don’t like this shit?” the Alpha grumbled. “Is the pot full?”

“Yes. Just one bite, please?” Poe put on his most pleading expression.

Ben rolled his eyes.

“Fine.” Instead of taking the proffered roll, he grabbed one from the Irresistible box under the incredulous gazes of his colleagues.

“You saw that,” Bebe whispered.

Poe nodded.

“I saw that.”

He wasn’t the only one.

Dopheld turned the white drawing board to the audience.

“Allow me to present to you a comprehensive table of all known interactions between one Benjamin Solo and cinnamon rolls.”

“Seriously?” Kaydel snorted.

Hux shushed her.

“Here you can see all interactions in chronological order. This graph,” Dopheld pointed out enthusiastically, “represents the correlation between the roll consumption and Solo’s mood improvement. This graph shows Solo’s reaction to baked goods, baked goods with cinnamon, baked goods from Irresistible, and cinnamon rolls from Irresistible.”

“Doph, what was your major?” Bazine called out.

“Statistics, why?”

“No reason.”

“As we can see, the only thing that causes a significant improvement in the subject’s mood are cinnamon rolls from Irresistible, with the notable exception of June 17th, when the subject ignored the rolls altogether and May 4th,” here Doph pointed the dates on the graphs, “when in absence of rolls the subject picked up a chocolate chip cookie. Therefore, we can safely say that the general rule “Solo hates baked goods” could be amended to “Solo hates baked goods, unless they are cinnamon rolls from Irresistible”.”

His colleagues shared overwhelmed looks.

“What’s the deal with chocolate chip cookies? Everyone loves them.” Snap frowned.

“It was _milk_ chocolate,” Jannah pointed out. “According to Ben it’s as disgusting as fake Omega pheromones.”

“Huh.”

Poe, who was sitting the closest to the entrance, quickly scrambled out of his seat. 

“Shit, Leia!”

Dopheld promptly turned the board the blank side up and everyone attempted to look as nonchalant as possible.

“Did I miss something?” Leia asked sweetly.

Her employees gulped. Despite being tiny, the woman was a force of nature and an Alpha to boot.

“No, nope, no,” Poe smiled nervously.

“No meeting?”

“No.”

“Not even a discussion of my son’s recent aberrations?” Leia asked, turning the drawing board the marked side up.

Everyone gulped.

“Well…”

“At ease,” the woman chuckled amusedly. “I don’t care what you do, just find this mysterious ingredient and keep it stocked. At least until we’re done with the Empire project,” she gave a long-suffering sigh before leaving them to it.

“So?” Kaydel prodded carefully.

“Looks like it’s something with the recipe,” Hux suggested.

Gwen nodded.

“Poe, you date that guy from Irresistible, right?”

“Um, yes, but…”

“Ask him.”

Poe gaped at her. “You’re kidding, right? It’s a trade secret.”

She rolled her eyes. “It’s not like you’re going to sell it.”

“It’s for the greater good,” Bebe supplied.

Poe’s shoulders dropped defeatedly. “I’ll see what I can do.”

And he did.

“I have a break-through,” the man excitedly announced, earning himself a few surprised looks.

“Really?”

“Yes! I talked to Finn,” he flushed a little, “the guy I’m seeing, and he told me that it was _him_ who made the rolls on June 17th.”

Hux blinked. “I fail to see how this is important.”

“OK, look,” Poe started gesturing wildly, “Irresistible is run by four people: Finn, the Tico sisters, and Rey. Finn makes bread and savory goods, Paige does cakes, Rose is pastries and décor, and Rey buns, muffins, and cookies. Sometimes they switch, like that day.” 

“So you are saying this guy Finn messed up the recipe?” Jannah said carefully.

Poe pouted. “He did not. Ben is just picky.”

“Can it be that this Rey adds some secret ingredient?” Gwen suggested. “Like Luke into his brownies.”

“Unlikely,” Poe shook his head. “Rey is more, like, “my secret ingredient is love.””

“So your break-through leads nowhere,” Hux snorted.

“Does not. It’s good detective work.” Poe’s eyes lit up. “Wait, we need a case name.”

“Goodness gracious.” 

“The Secret Ingredient! The Irresistible Secret!”

“The Mystery of the Buns,” Bebe supplied.

“Befuddling Buns. No, Ben’s Befuddling Buns,” Poe kept musing.

Kaydel scrunched her nose.

“Sounds like an asexual stumbled on porn.”

“The Case of Cinnamon Rolls,” Dopheld carefully suggested.

Poe sent him a kiss.

“Genius! The Curious Case of the Cinnamon Rolls. Poe Dameron and the Curious Case of the Cinnamon Rolls. The game is afoot!”

Kaydel shook her head. “No shit, Sherlock.”

“How anyone believes he’s an adult I’ll never know,” Hux sighed disapprovingly.

He wasn’t the only one wondering.

“You incompetent idiots are unable to do even one thing right!” Ben yelled at the top of his lungs. “You know how important this project is! You know that Palpatine is anal-retentive and you give me this shit?” He furiously shoved the papers under Poe’s nose.

“Remind me once again why we took on the Empire?” Jannah whispered to Bebe.

“It was Snoke’s idea. I think Poe said he and Palpatine are old flames or something?”

The woman shuddered. “Ew! Ew, ew, ewww! Never, _ever_ say that again!”

“You know what I think?” Hux whispered conspiratorially. “Solo will either blow up during the presentation…”

“Or?”

“We could ask Irresistible to do the catering.”

Jannah turned to Gwen. “Phas?”

The blonde nodded. “On it.”

And she did just that.

“I tell you, Leia, Finn does the best scones in the world,” Poe boasted about his boyfriend’s skills to his quite amused boss.

Finn smiled shyly. “You overestimate my abilities.”

“Nonsense!”

Whatever he was going to say was lost as a pretty young Omega with a curly bob stuck her head into the kitchen.

“Hey, Finn, are you going to help me or what?”

The man waved. “Give me a sec, Rey.”

Leia, Phasma, and Hux’s eyes instantly bugged.

“That is _Rey_?!”

Poe blinked confusedly. “Yes, why?”

“You never told us she’s _an Omega_ ,” Gwen hissed, anxiously counting how many HR violations were going to happen at any second.

Finn glared at her. “Does it matter?”

“She must leave! _Now_!”

Whatever lecture about suppressants and Omega rights Finn was going to deliver was lost as Ben’s office door opened loudly.

“Too late,” Hux detachedly commented.

The rest happened almost in slow motion. Ben and Rey locked eyes, the tension between them palpable.

“Omega!” he emitted a savage growl.

“Alpha,” she sighed dazedly.

One second they were eyefucking each other from opposite sides of the hall, the next Rey was climbing him like a tree.

“What the actual fuck?” Finn demanded, utterly bewildered.

Kaydel slapped his arm.

“Hush, they’re _soulmates_ ,” she sighed dreamily.

“Such a good little Omega,” Ben cooed in a tone his colleagues had never, _ever_ heard, “my good girl.”

“Yours, Alpha,” Rey fervently reassured him, nuzzling his gland.

“The Empire representatives will be here in twenty,” Gwen murmured absentmindedly, looking like she was seeing a car crash in slow motion. Then again, that probably was almost as catastrophic as a breakthrough heat/rut.

“And we’ve just cleaned the carpets,” Hux uttered forlornly.

That finally snapped Leia from deep profound shock of _finally_ seeing her son with a girl.

“Benjamin Organa-Solo!”

Ben blinked as if his head suddenly cleared. “Mama?”

Rey stiffened in his arms. “Oh shit!”

“I’m so sorry, I never…”

“Me neither, it’s just…” 

“I don’t even know your name,” he lamented.

“Rey.”

“ _Rey_ ,” Ben repeated with a dopey grin she returned.

“Benjamin, go home,” Leia said sternly. “Take your mate _home_ ,” she repeated slowly until his pheromone-clouded mind registered the words. “It’s _safe_. Good _nest_.”

“Safe, nest,” he repeated in daze.

“Alpha,” Rey sighed, wrapping her legs more firmly around his waist as Ben carried her away.

“I hope they won’t meet Palpatine in the elevator,” Poe murmured quietly, watching the retreating couple with shock.

Hux frowned. “Is he sane enough to drive?”

“You want him to traumatize a taxi driver?” Gwen pointed out. “Or us?”

“Right.”

Poe gasped. “Wait, who’s gonna deliver the presentation now?”

Leia’s smirk was positively evil. “You.”

“ _What?_ ”

“You can talk the pants off anyone and it’s _your fault_ ,” she resolute.

As Poe gaped at her, Gwen butted in. “Come on, Leia, we need to fill out Ben’s paperwork for the leave.”

“Oh yes.”

“He’s so going to pup her up,” the blonde shook her head in amusement.

“We can only hope,” Leia wistfully sighed.

Rey carefully arranged the congratulations-on-your-contract / apology pastries on the plate, her short hair barely covering the fresh mating bite on her neck gland.

“Sorry, the whole thing is really awkward,” she smiled sheepishly at her Mate’s amused colleagues.

“Don’t worry, it could have been worse,” Kaydel happily soothed her.

“You think?” Rey eyed her dubiously.

“Definitely. Besides, Ben is _so much_ nicer when you’re around.”

Rey’s gaze turned dreamy. “He’s such a sweetheart. A big teddy bear. I can’t believe he could ever be mean.”

Everyone politely didn’t say anything.

The girl moved onto the next pastry box and frowned.

“Rose, I asked you to _help me_ , not to flirt with Alphas. You’re no better than Finn.”

Her friend flushed, extricating herself from her conversation with Hux. “What, you’re the only one allowed to find your Mate at work?”

“So I’m the only one actually _working_ here?” Rey shot back.

The next moment a pair of strong arms wrapped firmly around her waist, making her let out a contented sigh.

“Sweetheart,” Ben nuzzled her neck shamelessly.

She beamed. “Hello to you, too.”

“They are so cute I want to puke,” Hux mumbled under his breath.

“No rolls for you, Solo?” Poe teased.

“I have something better to eat this time,” Ben shot him a shit-eating grin to everyone’s shock.

Rey shook her head fondly. “Incorrigible.”

“That’s insane, right?” Bebe whispered to Snap.

“Solo making a joke or Solo being mated?”

“Both.”

“At least their kids will be cute,” Bazine quipped diplomatically as the pair shared a passionate kiss.

“If they take after their ma.”

“Any chance he’ll take paternity leave?” Poe asked hopefully. 

They all sighed.


End file.
